Robotics Teams Put Theory Into Practice

High school robotics teams across the area worked out the kinks to their latest creations during the 'Suffield Shakedown,' held at Suffield High School on Feb. 18.

The scrimmage prepared the teams for the upcoming FIRST robotics competitions.

FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) was founded by inventor Dean Kamen, who holds patents on more than 400 inventions, including the Segway and life-saving medical devices and equipment.

The teams have six weeks to design and build a robot, which performs a series of difficult tasks. The scrimmage at Suffield High School had the energy of championship basketball game, coupled with an engineer's laser focus on problem-solving.

Linda Horn, a mentor for Team 176: Aces High, a team comprised of students from Suffield and Windsor Locks high schools, said the scrimmage was a "Week Zero" affair, which allowed teams to find out what worked and what went kaput.

The robots had to collect energy, large fluorescent whiffle balls, load them in an attached container, and propel the balls into a basket, accumulating points. Teams of two stood behind a wall of plexiglass, each operating a game controller.

According to Horn, the teams have only a few days to correct mechanical or programming problems. The robots must then be "bagged up" and left alone until the official competition begins in Waterbury on March 3.

Teams must compete in two district competitions. If they survive that round, they will travel to Durham, New Hampshire for the regional. The world championship will be held in St. Louis.

Aces High was founded 22 years and is supported by the United Technologies, a Connecticut-based company. The students receive assistance from mentors, who teach design and programming skills.

"We have a fabulous shop at Windsor Locks High School," Horn said. "The kids are not only learning about the robot and the game, but they're learning all the skills how to create and design it, cut it on the computer aided machinery, and how to put it all together."

Nishita Babu, a junior at Windsor Locks High, said cooperation was the first lesson she learned when she joined the team.

"We're learning a lot about programming and how the robot works. It's a lot of practical skills, as well as life skills. You learn so much," Babu said.

Frustration comes when the programming doesn't work as planned or a glitch crops up, she said.

"The mentors are helpful. They're always trying to teach us something new," she said.

While her strengths are in designing and drawing, she was taught how to use some of the machines in the shop.

Her teammate, Richard Gauvin, used C++ for the programming language, a FIRST requirement. He called C++ a "fairly low-level language" that is easy to learn and download.

"We can train new programmers relatively quickly," Gauvin said.

He said the robot has to be designed in a way that efficiently melds together the design, electronics, and programming. Worcester Polytechnic Institute has a robust programming library available for download, Gauvin said.

The lines of code get longer as the teams move on to the next levels, which require the robots to perform more sophisticated tasks. The robots become more autonomous, able to operate with little interference.

Gauvin has his career goals either in computer science or nuclear physics.

"FIRST is a good way to get into the sciences. It's definitely hands-on and pragmatic, which is what I like most about it," he said.

Jacob Szamani, of Team 230 of Shelton, who operated the game controller behind the plexiglass barrier, said the team's robot performed well early in the scrimmage.

"It was the first time we were testing our shooter. We were able to pick up many balls," he said. "This is the first time running the robot on the field."

Team 230's robot was able to scoop up the balls fast and shoot them into the hoop. He joined the team two years ago during his freshman year.

"It's huge. I love coming here and driving. It's a lot of fun. The first time seeing it work like this was very exciting," Szamani said.

A number of teams dressed in costumes and made grand entrances as they brought their robots into the gymnasium. The hallways were jammed with teams, fine tuning the robots or deciding whether a complete overhaul was necessary.